I play a lot of things close to the vest on the blog. Sure, I’m pretty open about some things, but then I don’t give you the full-on details of what I’m working on or how I plan to complete those things. I realize this isn’t helpful, and probably creates a disconnect between me and you. And at the end of the day, it also makes everything I’m saying pretty vague.

And I guess I thought that was serving me, but it’s really not. At the end of the day, I can’t just put a bunch of vague noise up online and expect it to help get me where I want to go.

So with that in mind, know that the tips I’ve listed down below on how to live the life you want are tips that I will be following to get me to a place where I’ll be a full-time writer. My goal is to work in the travel writing industry mostly, and feature writing for local and national publications as well.

How to Live the Life You Want

001: Know what you would do if money were no object.

For me, I know that if money weren’t an object, that I would write full-time. It’s the one thing I love to do, and it’s the one thing that I can’t take off the to do list. Sure, I don’t always work on the same type of writing. But I do always write.

Knowing this has really helped me focus on what I want to do. I’ve spent far too much time in my life doing things I thought I was supposed to do, only to find that those things are trash. And I’m done believing there are things I HAVE to do to survive. I can do what I want to earn money, even if it’s not as stable as any day job I’ve had.

002: Commit to change.

It’s one thing to say you want something and another to actually make it happen. I know there are steps I have to take to achieve the goal, and a lot of those steps contradict how I’m currently living my life. So in order to get where I’m going, I have to commit to change.

There are many ways I’m doing this in my life. Currently, I’m going through the arduous process of downsizing things that no longer serve me, paying off debt, and saving up a stash of money to get me through the lean freelancer times. But I’m also doing things like committing to personal and business development by reading more about money and business, and taking e-courses that are going to support this goal. And I’ve also done things to make it easier to achieve this, like scheduling my free time and getting rid of Netflix.

003: Set goals and make a plan.

I’ve mentioned my overarching goal of freelancing and travel writing full-time above, but that is definitely broken into sub-goals. Then, those sub-goals are broken into tasks that I can complete individually and each of those will help me achieve those sub-goals. Then, once I’ve tackled the sub-goals, I will achieve the overarching goal.

The number one reason people don’t achieve big goals (or finish writing their big projects, for that matter) is because they don’t break it down into small, manageable tasks. And while all the manageable tasks are too many to list here, I don’t mind sharing them. In fact, I think in January, I’ll be sharing a kanban board with all my quarterly goals and tasks. If that’s something you want to see, let me know in the comments.

004: Be consistent.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. It was built in several days, and it was probably pretty dang hard all around. Know that your goals are going to be that way too. I have a tendency to get down because I want what I want when I want it, but I have to remind myself that the stage I’m at is necessary, and that I have to experience it to get where I’m going.

It can be easy to take days off when it comes to working on goals. And you should definitely have some downtime. But you also have to be consistent. Be mindful and intentional about the downtime you take, and the consistency will come naturally. You’ll find yourself working toward the goals more instead of giving in to the urge to slack off.

005: Never stop learning.

It doesn’t matter if you have a goal you’re working toward if you only plan to approach that goal with old information. I’m a lifelong learner type, and I love getting new information or learning new skills. And when I find that I’m in a job that is no longer teaching me new things, I feel stagnant and know I need to move on to a new challenge.

For me, learning takes many forms. It could be trying new things or challenges. It could be reading a book. It could be an e-course. Hell, a lot of the time it’s seeking out tutorials on YouTube to find new processes or ways to do things. But it doesn’t really matter what it is. As long as I keep learning new things, I’m moving closer to living the life I want.

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Marisa Mohi and MarisaMohi.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.